AMHERST, Mass. (AP) — UMass guard Derrick Gordon has become the first openly gay player in Division I
men’s basketball.
Gordon
made the announcement in interviews with ESPN and Outsports on
Wednesday. Gordon said he gained confidence by seeing an NBA team sign
Jason Collins, who became the league’s first openly gay player when he
joined the Brooklyn Nets this season.
"I want to be myself," Gordon said in the interview televised on ESPN. "I don’t want to
hide and be someone I’m not."
The
sophomore was the Minutemen’s fourth-leading scorer with 9.4 points per
game last season, when UMass reached the NCAA tournament for the first
time since 1998. A transfer from Western Kentucky, Gordon played at high
school powerhouse St. Patrick in New Jersey.
In the Outsports
interview, Gordon said he considered quitting basketball last fall and
isolated himself from teammates because of teasing. Over the summer, he
had "liked" a photo on Instagram of him and his then-boyfriend in front
of gay bar.
"I just wanted to run and hide somewhere," he said. "I used to go back to my room and I’d
just cry."
Gordon
was also inspired by spending time with several gay people in the world
of sports in March, according to the Outsports article, and decided to
come out to his family and then the Minutemen.
Once he opened up
to his teammates, they were encouraging. In the ESPN interview, he
recalled that they told him: "We’re going to support you no matter
what."
Coach Derek Kellogg told ESPN that he could already see a newfound happiness in Gordon.
"I
haven’t felt like this. Ever," Gordon said in the Outsports interview.
"It’s a lot of weight lifted off my shoulders. I can finally breathe now
and live life happily."
Collins made a trailblazing announcement
last April when he came out in an interview with Sports Illustrated. In
February, he became the first openly gay male athlete in the four major
North American pro sports leagues.
Michael Sam, an All-American
defensive end at Missouri, came out in interviews with ESPN, The New
York Times and Outsports in February after his college career ended. He
is projected as a middle-round prospect in next month’s NFL draft.
Sam
tweeted congratulations to Gordon after the announcement: "You have so
many in your corner and we’re all proud and rooting for you."
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